(EnergyAsia, December 12 2013, Thursday) — Malaysia’s state energy firm Petronas said it and Brunei state agencies have signed a set of agreements to jointly develop projects in their countries and Canada. The most important ones to pre-empt and resolve border disputes and contested hydrocarbon reserves are for the merged development of Malaysia’s Kinabalu West...

(EnergyAsia, December 11 2013, Wednesday) — Having launched a “large-scale modernisation programme”, the government of Uzbekistan expects the nation’s economy to grow by more than 8% in 2013 and 7% next year, said the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Despite facing a deteriortaing external environment, the IMF said Uzbekistan’s near-term economic outlook is favourable and the...

(EnergyAsia, December 11 2013, Wednesday) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has announced it is lending a total of US$960 million to boost electricity supply in Pakistan and Myanmar. In Pakistan, the bank’s loan of US$900 million will support the construction of a supercritical coal power generation plant in Jamshoro town in Sindh province, about...

(EnergyAsia, December 10 2013, Tuesday) — Dutch oil and chemicals storage giant Royal Vopak has announced that it will be building Southeast Asia’s first independent liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) facility in Singapore. Vopak said it expects to complete the refigerated import terminal on Jurong island with an initial capacity of 80,000 cubic meters (cbm) in...

(EnergyAsia, December 10 2013, Tuesday) — To the peril of most investors, the allure of Asia’s hugely lucrative liquefied natural gas (LNG) business often obscures the view of an industry increasingly threatened by fast-rising cost and political risks. The industry is straining even the tolerance of experienced medium-sized players like Malaysia’s state-owned Petronas which this...

(EnergyAsia, December 9 2013, Monday) — UK’s AMEC said it has secured a contract from Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC) to provide project engineering and management services for the Mina Al Ahmadi, Mina Abdullah and Shuaiba oil refineries in Kuwait. The five-year call-off contract, which has an optional one-year extension, is worth up to 72...

(EnergyAsia, December 9 2013, Monday) — The world’s third largest liquefied natural gas exporter has begun its transition to become a net importer expected sometime next decade with the signing of its first purchase agreement. As it struggles to meet Indonesia’s rising energy demand, state energy firm Pertamina will begin importing 800,000 tonnes of LNG...

(EnergyAsia, December 6 2013, Friday) — Singapore Exchange (SGX) said its suite of thermal coal futures products achieved record volume and open interest last month. The exchange said traders transacted a record high of 705 lots representing 705,000 metric tonnes and maintained 605 open interest lots at the end of November. “Participation in SGX thermal...

(EnergyAsia, December 6 2013, Friday) — With the completion of the 488-metre-long hull of the “largest floating facility ever built”, Shell is preparing to unleash its floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) technology to mine the world’s oceans. The hull’s recent floatation marked a major step forward in the European major’s construction of its giant Prelude...

(EnergyAsia, December 5 2013, Thursday) — As it shifts investment focus from conventional onshore projects, Russia will need the support of international oil companies to develop its more difficult and expensive tight oil and Arctic reserves, and liquefaction facilities to maintain hydrocarbon production in the long term, said consultant Wood Mackenzie. The new projects will...

(EnergyAsia, December 5 2013, Thursday) — India has taken a first step to push for lower liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices by hosting a major forum for aggrieved Asian consuming countries in New Delhi this week. Apart from India, representatives from Japan, South Korea, China and Taiwan who represent 70% of global LNG consumption are...

(EnergyAsia, December 4 2013, Wednesday) — Mechel OAO, a leading Russian mining and metals company, said its Elgaugol OOO project company has received the US$150-million first tranche of financing for a major coal project from Vnesheconombank. Mechel is borrowing a total of US$2.5 billion from the Russian bank to develop the first stage of the...

(EnergyAsia, December 4 2013, Wednesday) — Qatar’s position as the world’s leading liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplier will not be threatened by the shale gas revolution in North America, said the Qatar National Bank (QNB) Group. While fracking has enabled the US to sharply reduce LNG imports and to even become an exporter in coming...

(EnergyAsia, December 4 2013, Wednesday) — ExxonMobil has reduced its original 60% shareholding in the development of a block of Iraq’s giant West Qurna oilfield to 25% after concluding sales to two state-owned firms of China and Indonesia. PetroChina said it has bought a 25% stake in the West Qurna-1 oilfield project from Exxon Mobil,...

(EnergyAsia, December 3 2013, Tuesday) — Singapore’s Sembcorp Industries said it has expanded its utilities business on Jurong Island, with the launch of its new S$154 million multi-utilities centre to supply energy, water and on-site logistics services to oil, petrochemical and chemical companies. The new plant on the island’s Banyan district adds to the company’s...

(EnergyAsia, December 3 2013, Tuesday) — The Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) has tempered its forecast for global oil demand growth over the next two years in its latest November report. The US government agency now sees world oil demand averaging 90.25 million b/d in 2013 and 91.39 million b/d next year, just slightly lower than...

(EnergyAsia, December 2 2013, Monday) — Citing improving economic conditions in the US and Europe, the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has slightly raised its November forecast for global oil consumption for 2013 and 2014. It now expects this year’s global oil demand to rise by 860,000 b/d, up from last month’s call for (more…)

(EnergyAsia, December 2 2013, Monday) — China Aviation Oil (Singapore) Corp Ltd (CAO), said it has set up a London-based subsidiary to expand operations into Europe to take advantage as well as increase the value of the continent’s growing oil trade with Asia. CAO said the establishment of wholly owned China Aviation Oil (Europe) Limited...